I am dedicating this page to my best friend. He has been so special in my life. I met him last year October and it seems like such a lifetime ago. He hails out of Browns Town, in the Parrish of Saint Ann's. He was originally born in Alexandria. So brotha "Brown Man, " this page is in your honor. You have taught me through your words and historical insight how special , "life in deh country can be." Him know sey me a town gal, but still he willing fe teach mi about life a country."
Brown's Town is located in North West St Ann in the Dry Harbour Mountains 1200 feet above sea level. It is about 12.87 kilometers (8 miles) from the north coast. It spreads up and down steep slopes of several converging valleys with a focal point at the Norman Market where the interior road intersects the north/south road from Discovery Bay to Cave Valley.
Colonel Hamilton Brown
He is recorded has having started as an estate bookkeeper and ended as a very big landowner. He had owned Huntley and Minard in a time when it extended to and beyond Enfield.
Brown was in charge of a section of the militia and is said to have drilled and trained the soldiers in Huntley Common. It is said that a Colonel Hylton assisted him financially in making Brown's Town.
He represented St Ann in the House of Assembly for twenty-two years.
He is accredited to have built the original St Mark's Anglican Church where he was buried. This is after he helped to establish the notorious Church Union whose objective was to terminate the activities of the missionaries. The Church Union was responsible for the following actions against the missionaries:
· One missionary was tarred
· Another had shots fired at his home to scare his family
· Churches built for slaves were either burnt or demolished
· The Baptist Chapel was knocked down.
Brown ignored the Governor of Jamaica at the time, the Earl of Musgrave, who made a call for the cessation of activities against the missionaries. The Earl then ordered Brown and Hylton to meet him at Huntley Common. Brown and Hylton took a group of officers and soldiers to meet the Earl who reproved the colonels and ordered the to unsheathe their swords. Confusion resulted with the officers removing their epaulets and trampled them in anger on the ground. The Earl remained calm and called on the lower ranked officers to lead the now disgraced colonels away.
This did not deter Brown.
The Governor then sent a detachment of soldiers to bring the dissidents into Kingston. On hearing of this Brown gathered his former militia, divide them into two groups, sent one set up the hill and the rest at the foot of the hill behind Minard. When the soldiers from Kingston arrived Brown and his group came to meet them. It so happened that one of the officers that came for Brown was his cousin. Both recognized each other at the same time and went to greet each other. They spent the evening feasting and drinking. The soldiers stayed at Minard for three days.
The place of the meeting of the two groups is called STANDFAST.
Yet, Hamilton Brown has been described as a generous but stern.
Inscription on his tombstone reads:
'Hamilton Brown of Antrim, Ireland, died September 18th,
1843. He was the founder of this town, and for 22 years was one of the representatives of this parish in the House of Assembly. His name will long be cherished by a grateful community who for nearly half a century experienced the benefits of his generous mind and heart.'
(Dictionary of Place-names in Jamaica - Inez Knibbs Sibley Institute of Jamaica 1978 p 25-26)
mother Miss Ditty,Sister Joyce,Brother Fred there place of resident situated in the benning area I also
knowing of Norma Walters, My name is Jon Bailey I leave Browns Town 1965 I have been living in Canada for the past 30 years.I have lots of Canadian friend visit Ocho Rio I told the please visit Browns Town an they do and love it. The fresh fruit and the people the market place "oh Jon we will go back in a heart beat"Yours Truly, Jon Bailey
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2 comments:
Very nice article!
Thank you MrsYfa....irie
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